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CarSpace Alternate RouteTurn off the nav system, crumple up that MapQuest printout, and let's find out where the next random turn may take us! Jul 7, 2009 - Slick GamesAR Index 517.05 -8.23 (-1.57%) Stocks of individual interest Dow 8324.87 -204.51 (-2.40%) Prices at the pump have started to ease a bit, although it seems to have nothing to do with any kind of reality regarding supply and demand, just more of the games in the commodity markets. But it seems that this time around, unlike last year, the traders haven't been able to force the markets to insane levels. The year-to-date chart of crude oil price divided by gas price at the pump is settling down to a steadier number. Doesn't look like the doom merchants have a prayer of driving us crazy this summer!
Jun 2, 2009 - Penny Stock NewsAR Index 554.93 +48.67 (+9.61%) Stocks of individual interest Dow 8721.44 +444.12 (+5.37%) With all the semi-uncertainty last week about whether GM would file bankruptcy and what would happen as a result, GM stock lost almost half its value in the last week. It's actually not quite to penny stock territory, but that 75 cent price tag might induce some speculation, even by small investors, in the GM that might emerge out of all this. Speaking of speculation, the current run up at the pumps, But as much as the media wants to whip this up into a crisis again, a comparative look at oil prices from April 15 to June 1 for this year and last shows we're not in the same place. Remember, last year when speculation (and that's all it was) drove the price of oil close to $150/bbl it crashed pretty hard afterwards, getting back down to under $40. I think public pressure is going to stop this nonsense well before we approach those levels again.
Nov 10, 2008 - Happy Hours!
This past summer all we heard was "no end in sight" for spiraling oil and gas prices and stories with headlines like, "Road Warning: $7 Gas May Be Ahead". Now here we are with gas heading towards $2 and oil down in the $60 range from its summer peak of close to $150. But like I said, nothing is going to go in one direction forever. As I filled up at a station last night I noticed a new sign on the pumps offering "drive time specials" on gas. Fill up weekdays between 6 and 8AM or 4 to 7PM and the price at the pump is reduced. Imagine that. Needing to give us incentives to buy gas. The "experts" are so wrong on so many things that you have to wonder why we think they're some kind of authority in the first place!
Nov 9, 2008 - Wild Ride
Gasoline for December delivery fell 8.8 cents, or 6.2 percent, to settle at $1.336 a gallon at 2:50 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The settle price was the lowest ever for a contract closest to delivery since it began trading in October 2005. U.S. fuel demand during the past four weeks averaged 19.1 million barrels a day, down 7.7 percent from a year ago, according to the Energy Department report. Gasoline consumption over the period was down 3.3 percent at 9 million barrels a day. The brief flurry with $4 gas seems to have actually changed our automotive lifestyles a bit. It would be nice to hear this reported as a positive instead of an "economic concern". Even gloom and doomers need a break now and then. Read more on gasoline futures at the Houston Chronicle
Nov 6, 2008 - Slippery Slopes
Consider this quote from a story on AFP this morning: A decline in oil prices gained momentum on Wednesday as the US Department of Energy (DoE) reported US gasoline stockpiles had jumped by 1.1 million barrels last week, confounding market expectations for a drop of 600,000 barrels. They were so close weren't they? For experts, that's pretty far off. It's a lot like the annual dire predictions for holdiay retail sales. This is going to be the worst Christmas ever... and then the experts are surpirsed when holiday sales increase. I'm thinking we need some new experts. Besides, isn't decreased demand for oil the idea? Isn't this good news?
Oct 15, 2008 - Go Baby Go
The average retail price for gasoline fell 33.3 cents over the last week to $3.15 a gallon, the biggest price decline ever recorded by the government, the Energy Department said on Tuesday. My local price is down to $2.97 for 87 octane from a peak of $4.05 this summer. And you thought there was no good news out there!
Sep 18, 2008 - I Know It When I See It
Spiking gas prices in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike raise the question... is it the market or price gouging? In places like Florida, and North and South Carolina investigations have been launched into the question. In North Carolina, prices reached $7.32 a gallon, and that state's attorney general had sent subpoenas to seven gasoline retailers there. Like art, I know it when I see it. And at $7.32 I'm seeing it! Read more at islandpacket.com
Sep 11, 2008 - Mathematical Curiosities
Oil is off its peak price by just over 30%, but prices at the pump are only down 12% over the same time. So I got curious and decided to look at how things behaved on the way up. Back in April with oil and gas prices shooting up, I decided to create the AR Index and track things every Tuesday. The push up was well underway when I started tracking as oil was at $115 and gas (87 octane) was at $3.29 per gallon. From April to the price peak in July oil was up 26.9% and gas prices were up 20%. Amazing how the price at the pump seems to like to move up, isn't it? For the last month gas prices have not changed at all as oil has dropped over $13. That same $13 increase in oil resulted in a 66 cent increase at the pump. If there's a formula involved here it's beyond my reckoning. Give me a differential equation any day of the week instead!
Sep 4, 2008 - Gas Prices?
A lot of folks were wondering how gas prices were going to affect the thongs that usually clog the roads leading to State College. If there was a motorhome that didn't make the trip, I didn't notice it. All the tailgate parties were right where they always are. Gas prices? What gas prices?
Jun 25, 2008 - One For You Nineteen For Me
But in the face of increased pressure from gas price, who would have thought that the IRS would be one of the first to provide a bit of relief of that pressure? The Internal Revenue Service announced an 8-cent increase Monday in the automobile mileage rate that taxpayers can claim for business and other types of travel. The IRS normally updates mileage rates each fall for the following calendar year. The last time the agency adjusted the rate midyear was in 2005, after Hurricane Katrina led to a nationwide spike in gasoline prices. Now it's an election year and it may have not happened otherwise, it won't directly affect all of us, and I'm not sure the rate increase is any larger than it would have been in the fall, but at least it's a bit of news that doesn't fall into the gloom and doom category. It may not offset your miles per dollar by much, but it counts for something, right? Read the entire article at the StarTribune.com
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